New Beauty Buys: Back to Basics

I’ve mentioned many times before that I tend to be a bit of a creature of habit when it comes to beauty and skincare. However, every now and again I go a bit crazy and try a whole host of new things – with varying success levels, it has to be said. After a bit of an unsuccessful dabble with new beauty buys at the end of last year, I think I can say I’ve had a little more luck with my latest beauty haul – and the reason why? Some of these purchases aren’t technically “new” at all…

I was a huge devotee to the original Bourjois Healthy Mix foundation for years and years – I loved the low-to-medium coverage and the dewy finish, its build-ability and its price point. When I ran out of my last bottle last year, and my local Boots didn’t have any more in stock (it appears I’m not the only fan!), I took a chance on the Revlon ColorStay foundations instead. You can read my review on those here – basically, good but not great, and I had to mix two formulas to get anywhere near the kind of base that I like. Not ideal. When I heard that Bourjois had reformulated Healthy Mix, I was dubious about it – but with my patience running out with Revlon, I decided to give it a go.

And? It’s actually even better than the original! That same level of coverage, to hide tired skin and even out the complexion, without masking the skin underneath – I have always loved that my light freckles are visible through this foundation. But somehow, skin looks fresher and dewier, and I found that the base lasted all day long. My previous bugbear with the old formula had been that it tended to oxidise slightly if worn all day, but so far, no such issues. I am sold, all over again! I’m the lightest shade, no 51 Vanille Clair for reference.

Along with a lighter base for Spring, I wanted to try a lighter concealer too. I’m a lover of Collection’s Lasting Perfection Concealer, and while I can’t see that changing any time soon, I prefer to use something a little more hydrating on the eye area when the warmer weather rolls around. This concealer is like a blanket, totally smothering dark circles, redness and blemishes – perfect for a heavier foundation but perhaps too much on a dewy, glowy base. Once I was convinced by the Healthy Mix foundation, I thought about reverting to the new-formula HM concealer too (loved this years ago, before full-time work gave me darker eyes than my uni days!) – but then I spotted the sleek packaging and alluring name of the Radiance Reveal concealer. It was love at first swipe, dear readers – blended with thermal spring water and hyaluronic acid, it’s seriously hydrating, very fluid and just so light. I have used this a few times now and it’s everything I look for in a concealer. There’s no creasing, no caking, no fading away – just luminous, bright-looking skin all day long. I picked Ivory and it’s perfect, slightly lighter than my foundation for a really perky, bright-eyed finished look. I wouldn’t use this on blemishes or obvious redness (Lasting Perfection is always my weapon of choice for those kinds of issues) but for creating fresh, glowy eyes it’s ideal.

Of course, for any base, primer is an essential. I absolutely love L’Oreal Infallible Mattifying Base, so it’s no surprise to see a new tube in this haul, to replenish my nearly-finished tube in my makeup bag. If you like that silicone-type of primer, like the renowned Smashbox primer, you’ll love this. It’s perfect for making sure makeup sticks all day. But (kind-of) new to the stash? L’Oreal’s Lumi Magique Pure Light Primer. I say kind-of new; I last used this primer back in around 2014, so it’s been due a restock in my beauty arsenal. Sometimes I really like to ramp up the radiance, and this pearly-white primer is pure glow. It actually does a pretty good job of keeping makeup in place, but I’ll likely be mixing this with the Infallible primer for a glistening base that sticks fast.

Mascara-wise, I have been forced to try something new in this haul, and so far, so good – although I’m still wary of singing its praises too much. I went to repurchase my beloved L’Oreal Lash Architect mascara, but found that it had sold out (do we sense a theme emerging?), so after a long process of analysing each one in the stand, I went for the False Lash Superstar Red Carpet. Terrible name, great mascara. I’ve always quite liked those double-ended ones, with the white primer and the black topcoat, and this is definitely one of the better ones I’ve tried. One coat of white and two of black creates thick, fluttery lashes, and the flexible formula makes it really easy to reapply; plus it doesn’t flake or smudge, despite not being waterproof. So far, so good – hopefully it stays flexible and non-flaky as the formula dries and thickens.

My final new beauty purchase is one that I’ve invested quite a lot of optimism into; I’m really hoping that this product does what it promises to. After years of rave reviews and wondering, I’ve hopped on to the bandwagon (about five years after every other beauty blogger) and purchased La Roche-Posay’s Effaclar Duo +. My reason for lateness? I’ve never really suffered with spots before; I’d always been lucky that my skin was clear and besides the occasional hormonal blemish, nothing really caused me a problem with my skin. But for the last few months, I’ve been suffering with those horrible under-the-skin blemishes on my chin that won’t disappear, and I know they’re down to nothing but hormones. I’ve heard that this is one of the best products for dealing with those kind of spots, and I’m really hoping this is the case. After only a couple of uses, smaller bumps have disappeared and the larger ones are much less red and angry – so keep your fingers crossed for me!